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Author: Laura Nickerson

December 19, 2022

December 19, 2022

We’re surrounded by unusual color and beauty during the Christmas season. But the season also has a way of stirring up and increasing our anxiety. 

 

My suggested formula for increasing the joy of Christmas is to decrease the anxiety by taking momentary breaks to ask our heavenly Father to intercede and remove the buildup of worry that you may be experiencing.

 

God hears those prayers!  Even Jesus cried out to His Father when he was burdened while here with us on earth.

 

In 1 Peter 5:7, the Holy Spirit inspired Peter to write, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”

 

During the Christmas season, as you focus on God’s ultimate Christmas gift to us, can you allow yourself to stop, as needed, and surrender your anxieties to Him?

December 12, 2022

December 12, 2022

Advent, meaning ‘Coming’ in Latin, is the word most churches use to describe our focus on Jesus coming into the world as a baby. Advent is a time to concentrate on what Christmas is really about!

 

After telling His disciples that He would send them the Holy Spirit, He said to them, “Peace I leave with you, My Peace I give to you, not as the world gives . . .”

 

Today, the prospect of peace, both in our country and our world seems more distant every day. Our world appears out of control. We wonder if we can ever find peace and whether that peace will be lasting. 

 

There was also a great deal of unrest in the world at the time of Jesus’ birth. As it happened, Christ’s coming brought conflict rather than peace, ending with His death. But, as He promised, following His resurrection, He will provide the gift of personal peace to all who are willing to surrender their pride and put their trust and faith in Him, the Prince of Peace.

 

Our acceptance of Jesus, a personal gift of Himself, includes His abiding presence along with the gift of His peace! He is with us continually, even in the midst of the storms. His peace is a lasting peace. 

 

Have you accepted Jesus and the peace of His presence? 

December 5, 2022

December 5, 2022

One of the highlights of Christmas for me is the focus on the message of hope!

 

In the first verse of his first letter to Timothy, Paul references “ the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope.”  Vine’s New Testament Expository Dictionary explains that the most frequent significance of the word “hope” relates to “a favorable and confident expectation” and “the happy anticipation of good”.

 

Without Jesus as our hope, we have no real, eternal hope. We are only left with speculation and confusion that abounds in our fallen world.

 

I celebrate the Christmas message of hope, the “confident expectation”, that putting our trust in Him brings the ultimate Christmas gift!

 

He is our hope!

 

What, or who, are you putting your hope in?

November 28, 2022

November 28, 2022

As the Lord encourages a closer walk with Him, my faith grows and becomes more integral to everything that I do.

 

A growing faith increases my desire to share my hope in Christ and helps me to assist clients to understand and experience the rest that only God can provide.

 

Faith also increases our comprehension of His love and cements our trust in Him to meet our deepest needs.

 

God alone is worthy of our worship and He is always faithful to keep His promises to us. When we have faith in Him, we can experience genuine rest and His great love. 

 

Many tend to look to their partner to meet needs that can only be met by the Lord.  

 

Who or what are you putting your faith in? To whom are you looking to meet your needs?

November 21, 2022

November 21, 2022

As Thanksgiving nears, my focus on the things that I have to be thankful for increases. I look forward to a road trip with my son to spend time with my parents in their retirement community. We are thankful for the homelike atmosphere and the opportunity to spend time with them as well as time with sisters and other family members in the area.

 

One day, out of the blue, my son quipped that we are not a “real family”. “We’re just two people who live together”. As a single Mom, his comment hit home. I told him that I understood how he felt because sometimes I sense a longing for a classic family – unified in accord with God’s will for His children. Perhaps your situation leads to a longing for your idea of life as part of an ideal family. 

 

Reminding myself and my son of all that we have to be thankful for helps to keep our minds from wandering into the depths of sadness over missing life in our idea of the ideal family. We realize that so many are in less than ideal situations and we think of how we can be a blessing to others. We find that giving encouragement and showing our Father’s love to others is fulfilling and uplifting. I’m always thankful for God’s provision in meeting our needs and allowing me to make my son my priority.

 

God reminds us that we should be thankful for everything (1 Thessalonians 5:18)! It’s a sure way of shining light in the darkness and causing the evil one to flee.

 

As believers, we are especially thankful for being rooted and grounded in His love and that His love is transformational. Knowing how much He loves us helps us to grow into the person he intends for us to become. He has taken me by my right hand, pulled me up out of my sin and shame, and lifted me up to sit with Him for all eternity. The love that He displayed in rescuing, mending, and restoring me moves me to want to share my good fortune with others!

 

If you need encouragement and more to be thankful for, I am available to talk with you.

 

What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving season? 

November 14, 2022

November 14, 2022

A few thoughts as Thanksgiving draws near…

 

Thankfulness always enhances our relationship with God and usually spills over to build better relationships with others.

 

Borrowing a quote from Andrew Murray that I like: “Thanksgiving will draw our hearts out to God and keep us engaged with Him; it will take our attention from ourselves and give the Spirit room in our hearts.” 

 

We should remind ourselves that thankfulness, by itself, flows as a gift of the Holy Spirit and His residence in us as believers, cementing our relationship with God and Jesus Christ.

 

Regardless of our current circumstances, the Holy Spirit can guide us through God’s Word to boundless reasons for thanking the Lord! 

 

Is thankfulness a main ingredient in your prayers? What are you thankful for today?

November 7, 2022

November 7, 2022

It has become clearer to me over time that the enemy of my soul has worked overtime for many years to interfere with the sharing of my story. This verse from Revelation has been one of the encouragements for my response.

 

At the beginning of 2019, I chose the word “Courage” as my word for the year. I proclaimed in a post, “Let this be the year you go after courage”.  I have tried to keep my focus on the leading of the Holy Spirit.

 

Recognizing that it is the devil’s desire to prevent me from sharing my story increases my desire to share it. God certainly does not want me, or any of His children, to live under a cloud of shame. He came to set the captives free! (Luke 4:18).

 

The Holy Spirit has encouraged me toward helping others by sharing the story of my own struggles and victories achieved through His power. Jesus’ blood has not only cleansed me, but it is He who has given me the victory and the courage to share my story with others!

October 31, 2022

October 31, 2022

The length of time before my own awakening to the reality of being deeply wounded from abortion has caused me concern over the uncounted women and men out there who have been needlessly suffering from a similar wound. Their suffering has probably been unacknowledged and silent despite the severity of damage at their core. Additionally, there has been a negative impact on relationships with spouses, children and friends.

 

My goal as a coach is to reach out and help others who are suffering from similar wounds by leading them to an understanding and acceptance of the gift that only the Lord, the One who can heal all wounds, including the wounds of abortion, can provide. The words of Sarah Young are encouraging: “Offering help to hurting people gives meaning to your suffering – and glory to God.”

 

God has provided a clear path for the transfer of our suffering to Him. It is always exciting to me to have the opportunity to share my knowledge and experience in helping others to put this suffering behind them and, at the same time enhance their relationship with God.

 

I love this quote by Richard Foster, “We can be assured of this: God, who knows all and sees all, will set all things straight in the end. Even better, He will dry every tear. In the meantime, He mysteriously takes our sorrows and uses them to heal the world.” 

 

So many of us need the healing, hope and the touch that only our Father can provide.

 

I have been personally blessed by His touch! 

 

Do you need His touch, too?

October 24, 2022

October 24, 2022

Are you feeling weary?

 

Maybe you are being challenged by a relationship with conflicts that are weighing you down. 

 

Do you sometimes wonder why God does not seem to be helping you with your burdens?

 

Are you confused about why He allows your strife to continue?

 

Consider the truth in these words written by the late pastor Albert B. Simpson:

 

“He has let that trouble come to you, beloved, just for an opportunity to get you out of it, that it may be a stepping stone to Himself”.  

 

Could it be that the challenges that you are experiencing are being used by the Lord Jesus to call you closer to Him?

 

Are you ready to accept His offer of rest?

October 17, 2022

October 17, 2022

It is important to set and make goals that are in line with the vision that we have for our lives. 

 

It is even more important to remain open to the Lord’s leading, even if it is in a different direction than we were planning.

 

When we have taken the step to set a goal and then act toward reaching that goal, He will occasionally show us a different direction.

 

I find this to be typical of how the Lord works with us.

 

After waiting for us to step out in faith and act, He steps in to meet us and help us to move toward His purpose and plan for our lives.

 

One of my jobs as a coach is to come alongside a client to help them in considering specific goals and their best next step toward reaching a desired goal.